Secret's in the sauce...

OK, so I'm forever looking at the pictures of my favorite photographers and wondering how on earth they do what they do. Admittedly, they likely know how to use their cameras a bajillion times better than I do, but I realized today that there just might be hope for those of us who don't know much about our cameras. Actions. And in my case, Totally Rad Actions. I bit the bullet and bought a set today and I am SOOOO excited about it. I re-edited the pictures from my last post just so you can see how awesome these actions really are. I realize we all have our own style/taste in photography so these might not necessarily be your cup of tea, but they are still pretty cool. And the best part is, you don't really have to be that good of a photographer to get some pretty darn good shots. (My brother is probably appalled right now because he knows how to get amazing shots straight out of the camera and doesn't need to doctor them up....but for the rest of us, there are actions!) So here, take a look at what a set of actions will do for ya. I have listed which particular action I used in the after picture, just in case you are interested.



Original:


after "Oh Snap"







Original:


after "Green with Envy"






Original:


after "Technicolor Dream World"






Original:


after "Oh Snap"




So there you have it. A few quick little actions that will add some pizazz to your ho-hum pictures. Go get some people (those of you who have Photoshop)...you won't regret it!

Through a different lens...

This morning, Silas and I set out on an adventure to play with Grama's awesome new lens. I could use a few more days playing around with it, but I love the thing already. Thanks for letting me borrow it, Sherrie!

Milestone...

I think I can officially say that coloring/writing can now be included in Owen's list of hobbies. People, you have no idea how excited this makes me! As a mother of boys, I have been aching for the day that they develop a desire to do something that I genuinely enjoy doing, too. Not that playing Legos, cars, Star Wars, and digging in the dirt isn't fun, but those are all activities I have learned to enjoy with my boys. But coloring and crafts, now that's another story. I could sit at a table with some paper and craft supplies in front of me for a long time and be perfectly content. So needless to say, I happily welcome this new development in Owen's life...and I think he does, too!

On a similar note, I think I have realized that I really love having kids. As much as I enjoy babies and cherish that short-lived precious time in my babies' lives, I have found that I really thrive as a mother of kids (you know, the kind that sleep through the night). I love playing make-believe, reading books with more than one word per page, love seeing them play with each other, love baking cookies with them when they can actually help, love going for real bike rides with them (not just walking at a snail's pace waiting for the scooter), love making treasure hunts for them they can actually do, and the list goes on and on. Don't get me wrong, I love babies and treasure their sweetness, but I do have to say that having kids is a lot of FUN!











P.S. Sorry about the mis-spelling of Anakin above. I just now learned the proper way to spell his name!

One that I never want to forget...

Owen was running through the pasture this afternoon when he fell and got several goat heads lodged in his hands. A few minutes later he said, "When I fell it reminded me of Jesus." When I asked him why he replied, "Because He had thorns in Him, too."



P.S. The photo above is just a random one I found on the internet. I didn't take it.

The Fair...

Just in case you haven't seen enough...

Here are some more beach pictures. But this is the last of them for this summer, I promise! We just got back from another glorious week at the beach. It never ceases to amaze me how good it is for the soul to get away and enjoy God's blessings.

More beach fun...